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The Washington Post reports Washington Redskins coach Marty Schottenheimer reiterated again the Redskins would like to trade down from the 15th pick in the NFL draft to add more selections later in the draft. He knows doing so will be tough. "Everybody wants to trade down," Schottenheimer said. "Maybe the thing to do is go against the tide and try to trade up." The coach played down the chances the Redskins would use their first round draft choice on Michigan G Steve Hutchinson, even if he was there at No. 15. He didn't rule out the Redskins selecting a cornerback, linebacker or defensive tackle. The coach hinted he would probably not pass on WR Koren Robinson of North Carolina State, if he was available. P Bryan Barker, signed earlier today, will replace P Tommy Barnhardt.

The Washington Post reports the Redskins have opened contract discussion with agent Gary Wichard for their own free agent LB Kevin Mitchell. He could become the starting MLB next season if they don't re-sign free agent Derek Smith or select a potential starter in next month's college draft. The team would also like to re-sign OL Jay Leeuwenburg, who could contend for a starting guard spot. Free agent PK John Carney will stop by on Thursday for a visit. It appears he is No. 1 on their list of candidates for the PK position. The Redskins worked out three kickers (John Hilbert, Jay Feely and Jim Kibble) and two punters (Andy Smith and Tony Umholtz) yesterday. P Tommy Barnhardt, the team's punter last season, is also an unrestricted free agent.

The St. Petersburgh Times reports that the Tampa Bay Bucs would like to bring in a veteran punter to replace Tommy Barnhardt who signed with the Saints. Two names being mentioned are ex-Eagles P Tom Hutton and former Saints P Mark Royals, a resident of Tampa. Currently the Bucs have two unproven punters on their roster. "We'll have a practice probably the first week of training camp. I wouldn't mind having a veteran for camp, if only because we've got two other punters who aren't that," special teams coach Joe Marciano said.

The New Orleans Times-Picayune reported today that P Tommy Barnhardt's three year deal with the Saints could be worth as much as $1.5 million with incentives. The article also stated that the Saints were presently undecided with what to do with incumbent P Mark Royals, but the paper quoted Saints' VP Charles Bailey as saying the team would likely not bring two punters to camp. Poor Mark Royals. All he did last season was lead the NFC in punting. However, it appears that the Saints may have been more impressed with Barnhardt's hang time and directional punting, which they considered superior to Royals'. Royals also likely did not enamor himself of team officials by being one of only two signed veterans who did not participate in the team's offseason conditioning program. Elsewhere, the paper reported "no significant movement" in the Saints' negotiations with CB Ashley Ambose.

As a follow up to a story from last week, ESPN is reporting that the Saints have officially signed P Tommy Barnhardt to a three-year contract. No financial terms were released but earlier reports had the contract right near the veteran minimum of $400,000 per season. He spent the last three seasons with Tampa Bay.

The Times-Picayune reports the Saints have reached a contract agreement with P Tommy Barnhardt and are continuing to exchange proposals with CB Ashley Ambrose. The team is expected to announce the signing of Barnhardt to a three-year deal on Monday; financial details have not been disclosed. With the signing, the team will likely release Mark Royals. Regarding Ambrose, the team is looking to sign him to a two- or three-year deal.

According to WWL radio, the Saints are most actively pursuing free agents OL Andy Heck, P Tommy Barnhardt and CB Ashley Ambrose. The Saints are believed to have made an offer to Heck, who they want to fill a reserve role at offensive tackle and guard. Heck may be more interested in the Redskins since he reportedly has a chance to win a starting role there. The Saints are reportedly preparing an offer to Ambrose, which could be made as early as next week.

As previously reported, the Saints had CB Ashley Ambrose and LB Greg Lloyd in for physicals and workouts yesterday. Ambrose, a New Orleans' native, told the Times-Picayune that he hoped the team made him an offer "he couldn't refuse" so he could return home. Ambrose also told the paper he was impressed with the Saints' defensive line and that was an important criteria in his decision-making process. The Times-Picayune reported today that Ambrose has outstanding offers from Kansas City, Atlanta, Dallas and Tennessee. The paper believes that, of the eight free agents that visited the team this week, the Saints are most likely to pursue Ambrose, OT Andy Heck and P Tommy Barnhardt. Heck would provide depth on the offensive line and Barnhardt would challenge established punter Mark Royals in training camp.

The Times Picayune reports that as reported yesterday, the Saints visited with CB Ryan McNeil, FB Tim Lester, LB Anthony Davis and P Tommy Barnhardt, all visited with the Saints on Wednesday. Saints VP Charles Bailey was impressed by McNeil's visit, but coach Mike Ditka is happy with his current starters so there is no way of knowing which way the Saints will proceed at CB, especially with Ashley Ambrose due in today. Davis, a starter for the Chiefs last season, was unimpressive in his workout and told team officials he hadn't been working out regularly. Lester was able to pass his physical as he recovers from a shoulder injury and as far as Barnhardt goes, the Saints already have a good punter in Mark Royals, who many feel already has the punting job locked up.

The Times Picayune reports that the Saints are calling their look at a bunch of Free Agents this week more of a fact-finding mission than a signing mission. So even though many Free Agents will pass through Saints headquarters this week, none are definite signing material - as of now. As reported earlier the list of players who have visited and will or have taken physicals includes, OT Andy Heck (Monday), LB Dixon Edwards (Tuesday), CB Ryan McNeil (today), P Tommy Barnhardt (today), FB Tim Lester (today), LB Anthony Davis (today), LB Greg Lloyd (Thursday) and CB Ashley Ambrose (Thursday). "This is a procedure that we're going through," Saints coach Mike Ditka said. "Charlie Bailey is bringing these guys in here so we can take a look at them, talk about them and see if they can help us. But I like the guys that we've got. I have no problem with our guys."